Hello Friends, and welcome! Today I am presenting a book release, ‘Exit Wounds’ by Annie O’Neill Stein.
“…The heart of this story rests in the rich character growth that the author was able to develop. The relatability and nearly historical aspect of this narrative really brought these characters to life. The way the author was able to delve into the emotional journey that the protagonist went on was so heartfelt and allowed readers to connect to the narrative. The amazing way the author wrote this journey in a way that felt like a collection of short stories and yet made the narrative feel cohesive was truly incredible.”
Anthony Avina Reviewed in the United States on September 10, 2022
5.0 out of 5 stars Thoughtful and Emotionally-Driven Dark Humor and Drama Novel…A Must-Read!
Here is the blurb for ‘Exit Wounds.’
Born to shanty Irish on one side and Park Avenue privilege on the other, Laura navigates a turbulent childhood filled with the alcohol-fueled abuse of her volatile father and her mother’s excessive drinking. As the middle child of three girls, she assigns herself the role of her mother’s protector, who dies when Laura is thirteen, leaving her heartbroken and adrift. Insecure, anxious, and fearful, she tries drugs, random sex, and a sequence of lovers. Along the way she becomes a successful painter and has a bad first marriage. Nothing however seems to assuage her emptiness and her sense of loss. Eventually, she marries a caring man and has a loving daughter. It is only at the end of her life and by way of an unusual and unexpected turn of events that she is finally able to make peace with herself, to let go of the feeling that she never really grieved, and said goodbye to her beloved mother, and to appreciate that though we work at love and acceptance, sometimes the most wonderful experiences in our lives come in unanticipated and unsought ways.
Read the Excerpt:
“It was past midnight, like it usually was when the “f* yous” and “no good bastard” started. The violence of their words and of their blows was nothing new. Laura’s parents fought nightly or almost nightly for a good two-year stretch. Mostly verbal, the occasional physical jousting left her mother with black eyes, swollen purple, fading to yellow with time, and red welted arms. Her mother wore her marks silently with whatever guilt, shame, and dignity she possessed. But she was never passive.
That night it was different. Laura was there. She would’ve preferred to be fast asleep, like a normal third grader, resting up for the next morning’s spelling test, but that wasn’t an option. There she was, standing in the doorway of her parents’ bedroom, yet again. Laura could see that her mother was in no shape to do the dance that night. Her eyes looked like they needed quiet, safety. Like she wanted to sleep it off. She wanted morning. Her face was sad, not fierce, and her voice not instigating, the way it was on other nights. Laura heard a tiredness in her soul for the first time and it broke her heart.
The strap of her mother’s pink nightgown had fallen off her left shoulder. The fabric of the gown was transparent, so Laura saw all there was to see. The narrow white folds of flesh, her pubic region, and the raw red rope of a scar above it, from where the doctors had removed her three daughters. Her right breast drooped a bit lower than her left. Her arms and legs looked like white stick figures drawn by a child. At that moment her mother looked like a child. A lost, torn, and tattered child unable to enunciate her own daughter’s name.”
About Annie O’Neill Stein
Annie O’Neill Stein has an engaging voice— quirky, funny, full of original observations and expressions, as she adroitly explores the mysteries of the human heart.
Native New Yorker Annie O’Neill Stein moved to Los Angeles in the early 80s as an actress, during the great migration of NY actors to LA. After many small parts in TV series, from Miami Vice to Charlie’s Angels, she decided to follow her true passion, writing.
She found her mentors in Eve LaSalle Caram and Kerry Madden at UCLA, and studied with them for several years. Being accepted to Sewanee Writer’s Conference to study with Alice McDermott planted the seed for Exit Wounds, her first novel.
Annie O’Neill Stein has written for magazines such as More, Los Angeles Times Magazine, Distinction, Folks, and was a regular contributor to the Huffington Post for several years. Some of the things she’s proudest of are leading creative writing workshops with foster teens for five years, and editing and publishing Beauty From Ashes, short stories, and poetry written by foster youth.
Book Details:
Author: Annie O’Neill Stein
Publisher: The Permanent Press
Publication Date: September 6, 2022
Hardcover: $29.95
Paperback: $22.00
ISBN-13: 978-1579626594
Thank you for visiting today. Annie’s book is for sale now, so go grab your copy!
Until Next Time,
Lynn
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Lynn Lawler's Creative Artists' Blog 